


The Queen's Gambit

by LittleUggie



Series: Works in Progress [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Evil Author Day, Hogwarts Era, No character bashing, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-16
Updated: 2020-02-16
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:28:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22747078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleUggie/pseuds/LittleUggie
Summary: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, but someone is not following the script.
Series: Works in Progress [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1386676
Comments: 3
Kudos: 26





	The Queen's Gambit

_ “Are you really Harry Potter?” Ron blurted out. _

_ Harry nodded.  _

_ “Oh- well I thought it might be one of Fred and Georges jokes,” said Ron. “And have you really got- you know…” _

_ He pointed at Harry’s forehead.  _

_ Harry pulled back his bangs to show the lightning scar. Ron stared.  _

_ “So that’s where You-Know-Who-?” _

_ “Yes,” said Harry, “But I can’t remember it.” _

_ “Nothing?” said Ron eagerly. _

_ “Well-I remember a whole bunch of green light, but nothing else.” _

_ “Wow,” said Ron. He sat and stared at Harry for a few moments, then, as though he had suddenly realized what he was doing, he looked quickly out of the window again.  _

Harry was going to break the awkward silence with a question, but was interrupted by the door sliding open. A girl with bushy hair and the boy Harry had seen on the platform who had lost his toad stood on the other side with their trunks. 

“Hello,” the girl said “Mind if we join you?” Harry and Ron shook their heads. There was a shuffle as the two newcomers situated their luggage in the overhead racks. The girl sat next to Ron, and the boy hesitantly sat next to Harry. He looked incredibly nervous. 

“I’m Hermionie Granger. I’m a first year.” 

“Us, too. I’m Ron Weasley.” 

“Harry Potter.” Harry braced himself for what was becoming an uncomfortably familiar reaction. Sure enough, the boy made a squeaking noise and almost dropped the box he was holding. Hermionie, however, barely blinked. 

“Nice to meet you,” She looked at the other boy, who mumbled unintelligibly under his breath, ducking his head. 

“Er, this is Neville, we met out on the platform.” 

“What’s in the box?” Ron eyed the box with holes Neville was clutching with some trepidation. 

Neville cracked open the lid. Harry and Ron leaned in to get a better look. There was a large toad inside, glaring balefully out at them.

“This is Trevor. I had a carrying case, but I...er, dropped it on the way to the station and he got loose. Hermionie helped me find him and gave me a shoebox to put him in.” 

“That was nice.” Harry said. “I’ve got an owl, Hedwig.” He gestured to where the cage hung from a hook, probably placed there for just that purpose. Hedwig had tucked her head under a wing, and appeared to be sleeping. Unsurprising, she was nocturnal and tended to be most energetic at dusk. 

“This is Scabbers,” Ron pulls out a large grey rat from his breast pocket. 

Hermionie makes a choking noise, and stares wide eyed at it. Ron holds the rat close and gives her an offended look. 

“Sorry, sorry. I’m just, er, not used to rats as pets.” She stares at the rat, who blinks at her, twitches his whiskers. 

Ron seems to accept this answer and softens a bit. “He doesn’t bite. He doesn’t really do much of anything, just sleeps. He used to be my brother Percy’s.” 

“How old is he?” Hermionie asks. 

“Dunno, eight or nine? I don’t remember when he got him.”

“That’s pretty old for a rat.” Harry says, peering at the rodent. Scabbers shifts under his scrutiny, as if uncomfortable.

Ron holds him up closer to his face. The rat and boy consider each other. “I guess, he seems healthy, though.” Ron concludes. Scabbers squeaks as if in agreement. 

Hermionie looks dubious, “You won’t get in trouble for bringing him will you? The letter said only cat, toad, or owl.” 

“They never said anything to Percy about it. I think as long as your familiar is small and fairly easy to care for, they don’t mind what you bring. My brothers’ friend Lee is bringing a tarantula.” Ron shuddered. “You couldn’t pay me to keep one of those.” 

“I’d like a cat, but my parents want to make sure I can keep up with my school work before adding on the responsibility of a pet.” Hermionie seems put out by this, folding her arms over her chest. 

They debate the merits of different types of animals and the difficulty of taking care of them. Neville even got over his nervousness enough to chime in. Apparently taking care of a toad was a surprising bit of work. Ron said that there is an owlery at the school that included school owls that could be borrowed to carry students’ mail if they did not have their own. 

“Is there a cattery, too, then?” Harry asked, imagining Mrs. Figg’s living room stuffed to the brim with (even more) cats.

“I dunno,” Ron says doubtfully. “Never heard of one.” 

“They can’t just let them roam around the castle,” Neville says with a thoughtful frown. “Wouldn’t they disrupt class or get into places they shouldn’t?” 

“Maybe they are confined to the dormitories?” Hermionie suggested. 

This led into a discussion of the different houses, and what the dorms were like at Hogwarts. Ron was happy to pass on his secondhand knowledge of the Gryffindor tower. Hermionie pulls out a copy of Hogwarts, A History, which Harry pages through with interest. Neville chimes in occasionally. Harry learns that Neville is a pureblood like Ron, but was raised by his Grandmother. He doesn’t mention his parents. Harry recognizes that type of deflection and knows better than to ask. 

While they had been talking, the scenery outside had transitioned from city to rolling countryside dotted with sheep and cows. A great clattering outside in the corridor interrupted the speculation of whether it was true prefects got to use a private swimming pool or not. A smiling, dimpled woman slid back their door. 

“Anything off the cart, dears?”

Ron and Neville both declined, having been packed lunches. Harry and Hermionie stepped out in the corridor to examine the magical snacks. Harry hadn’t who hadn’t had any breakfast, and had a bag full of gold burning a hole in his pocket, bought some of everything. Hermionie stuck with a few pasties. 

Ron and Neville stare at Harry as he tips his purchases onto the seat. 

“Hungry, are you?” Ron said. 

“Starving,” Harry said, pushing the packaged sweets to one side and sitting down. He tried one of the pastries. He had expected it to be sweet, but the pumpkin filling was rather savory and nutty.

“You want some?” Harry asked, seeing Ron frown as he looked at his corned beef sandwiches. Harry had actual friends he could share with now didn’t he? 

Ron looks embarrassed, “No, it’s fine. Mum just forgets I don’t like corned beef.” 

“Here, my parents would kill me if they knew I was eating this much sugar, anyway.” Hermionie  swaps the bag of sandwiches for a cauldron cake, and Harry presses a pumpkin pastie into Ron’s other hand. The boy capitulates, ears bright red. Neville was fine with his cold chicken, but accepts a few chocolate frogs and a liquorice wand. They settle in to snacking. 

“Why don’t your parents want you to eat sugar?” Harry asks, as he examines the filling of another pasty with interest. 

“They’re dentists and very strict about oral hygiene.” 

“What’s a dentist?” Ron asks with his mouth full. Hermione wrinkles her nose at the sight. 

“Non-magical healers who specialize in teeth.” 

Ron swallows thickly. “You’re muggleborn?” 

“Yes. It was rather a surprise when I got my letter. We thought it was a joke until Professor McGonegall turned our kitchen table into a pig.” 

Harry snorted. “Hagrid, the Hogwarts groundskeeper, delivered my letter. He gave my cousin a pig’s tail.” He blinked, “Oops, I wasn’t supposed to mention that.” 

Hermionie tilts her head. “I wonder why Professor McGonegall didn’t visit you, too? She said she went and explained things to all the new muggleborns.” 

Harry shifts uncomfortably. “I think I’m kind of an unusual case.” 

“That’s an understatement.” Ron says, he turns to Hermionie, excited. “Harry is famous!” 

Harry looks even more uncomfortable. “Um, my parents were a witch and wizard, but they died when I was a baby. I live with my aunt and uncle, who are muggles and they knew about magic, but didn’t tell me anything. They thought if they kept me away from anything...abnormal, that I wouldn’t be a wizard. They really didn’t want me to go to Hogwarts and were keeping me from seeing any of my letters. So I didn’t know anything about,” He waved his hands, gesturing around the train compartment, “all this, or, er, the famous thing until Hagrid showed up.” 

Neville and Ron both stared slack jawed at Harry. Hermionie looked curious and slightly concerned. Unsurprisingly, Ron found his voice first. 

“But, but, you’re Harry Potter! You defeated You-Know-Who!” 

Harry turns red, and slumps down in his seat. “I told you, I don’t remember that. I don’t know what happened.” 

“I read about his defeat in a couple of books. It doesn’t ever explain how he was defeated. It just says that when he tried to um, kill you.” She winces, “Sorry. It just said that the spell backfired somehow and destroyed him and a large part of the house. There is apparently a lot of debate by magic theorists on what actually happened. But since you were the only one to…” She trails off looking distressed. 

Harry frowns and looks down at his lap, fiddling with his empty pastry wrapper. “No, I get it. I’m the only one who was there when whatever happened, happened. But I can’t remember because I was too young.” Except for a flash of green light and high pitched laughter. He suddenly felt sick. 

“I can tell you what books you were mentioned in, if you like.” Hermionie said. “If you wanted to know more..” 

“Maybe later.” Harry said, feeling despondent. Ron still looked a bit flabbergasted. 

Neville, seeming to pick up on Harry’s mood, changes the subject. 

“Do you know about chocolate frog cards?” 

The conversation lightens as they talk about candy, taking turns trying each item. Ron and Harry made a game of tossing Bertie Botts Every Flavor beans in the air and trying to catch them in their mouths. Harry was pretty good at it. Neville was overcome with giggles at their antics. Hermionie rolled her eyes, but was suppressing a smile. 

It grew darker outside. Hermionie had just suggested they change into their school robes when the door slid open. The blonde haired boy Harry had met in Madam Malkin’s was flanked by two hulking figures. He was looking at Harry with a lot more interest than he’d shown back in Diagon Alley.

“Is it true? They are saying all down the train that Harry Potter is in this compartment. So it’s you is it?” 

“Yes,” said Harry, not liking the looks of the boys. Where the pale boy’s attitude reminded Harry of Dudley, the stance and general air of sullen menace were reminiscent of the other members of Dudley’s gang.

“Who’s saying that?” Hermionie asked. “We haven’t seen anyone but the trolley witch.”

Harry remembered how excited the Weasley twins had been to tell their mother they had met him, and thought he knew how that rumor got spread. They were probably lucky they had been left alone until now. 

The pale boy took his eyes off Harry, seeming to notice the other occupants of the compartment for the first time. His lip curled slightly at the sight of Ron. 

“Oh, it’s all over the train, people have been daring each other to come find out if it’s true.”

“Well, it is,” said Harry flatly. He empathized even more with the boa constrictor from the zoo now. He was glad it had gotten loose. 

“I don’t believe I introduced myself in Diagon did I? My name’s Malfoy, Draco Malfoy.”

Neville made a small noise, all eyes swiveled to him, causing him to shrink back from the attention. Malfoy’s eyes narrowed. He seemed about to speak, but Hermionie broke in. 

“Who are your...friends?” Harry was glad to see she looked wary of the two larger boys as well. 

“Oh, this is Crabbe and Goyle,” He said dismissively. “Our fathers’ have...business interests in common.” He looks with contempt at her denim trousers. “And you are?” 

“Hermionie Granger.” She glanced at Neville, who was looking down at Trevor’s box, miserably. “That’s Neville Longbottom, and this is Ron Weasley.” 

“Obviously,” Malfoy said sneering at Ron. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ron said angrily. 

“Oh, my father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford.” 

Ron looks like he is about to stand up and punch Malfoy, but Hermionie places a hand on his arm. 

“Do you often make a habit of insulting people you just met? That seems like a good way to alienate your peers.”


End file.
